Five Fantasy Baseball Winners from This Offseason

Earlier in the week I did my five fantasy losers from this offseason, so it’s only appropriate to do the top five fantasy winners from this offseason.

A fantasy winner doesn’t only have to be a player who switched teams and found himself in a better situation.

He could also be a player who benefits from someone else leaving his team, which opens up an opportunity.

Here are my top five fantasy winners from this offseason. Rankings are in no particular order.

5. Austin Jackson, OF, Detroit Tigers

Let’s face it; Jackson was never going to get a chance in a New York Yankees uniform. Now that he has been traded to Detroit, he will have the opportunity to be the Tigers’ opening day center fielder right out of spring training.

Remember, this is the same organization that gave Rick Porcello and Ryan Perry a shot last season and will give Scott Sizemore a shot to win the second base job in 2010. They don’t hesitate to give their rookies a chance.

In 132 games last year at Triple-A, Jackson hit .300 with four home runs, 24 stolen bases, and a .354 OBP. He also had 123 strikeouts in those 132 games, which is very concerning.

If you are in a standard league, draft Jackson as a backup outfielder. I don’t think he will be worthy enough to be in your regular lineup on a day-to-day basis.

In a keeper league, I would draft him in the early middle rounds.

4. Brandon Wood, 3B, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Becoming a solid fantasy contributor in 2010 is all about opportunity. With Chone Figgins moving on to Seattle, Wood will get every opportunity to win the starting third base job in Anaheim.

Wood has put up some impressive minor league numbers, but he hasn’t translated that success to the major league level. In 236 ABs over three seasons, Wood has a career .192 average.

I will give Wood a pass in those 236 ABs because it has to be hard for a young player to perform when he doesn’t get regular ABs and is shuffling between the minors and majors.

Here is what I expect from Wood in 2010. I expect a .255 average with 20 to 25 home runs, 65 to 75 RBI, and a .335 OBP. Those are good but not great numbers.

Draft Wood as a backup third baseman and as a future starting third baseman in keeper league settings.

3. Mike Gonzalez, RP, Baltimore Orioles

Gonzalez signed a two-year, $12M contract to be the Orioles' closer in 2010. Gonzalez goes from being the setup man and occasionally closing games in Atlanta to being the full-time closer for the Orioles.

The Orioles gave their bullpen 53 save opportunities in 2010, which ranked towards the bottom of the American League. However, I expect the Orioles and their bullpen to be improved in 2010, so that number of opportunities should increase next year.

Gonzalez becomes a very solid No. 2 fantasy closer in 2010.

2. Billy Wagner, RP, Atlanta Braves

What an amazing last 15 months it has been for Wagner. He underwent Tommy John surgery, and many thought his career was over.

He made a comeback with the New York Mets, and then the Mets traded him to the Boston Red Sox. Wagner had a 1.98 ERA with a 14.5 K/9 ratio in 15 appearances and proved he still had it.

Then there were rumors that Wagner was going to retire. After those rumors went away rather quickly, the Braves signed Wagner to be their closer in 2010.

The Braves offer their closers a decent number of save opportunities. In 2009, the Braves ranked in the middle of the pack in save opportunities (16th) with 59, and Braves closers combined to go 38-for-49 in save opportunities in 2009.

I would pencil Wagner in for 30 to 35 saves with an ERA around 2.30 to 2.40 and a K/9 around 10.5. He would make for a great second closer option or a very good first closer in most fantasy formats.

Look at the landscape of the closer position in 2010. It’s not very good. Wagner could be a top-10 closer in 2010.

Draft him behind the group of Mariano Rivera, Joe Nathan, Jonathan Papelbon, Jonathan Broxton, Heath Bell, and Joakim Soria.

1. Roy Halladay, SP, Philadelphia Phillies

Halladay finally gets out of the American League East and Toronto. Now he goes to the best team in the National League.

In my opinion, Halladay was the best pitcher in baseball pitching on a mediocre Blue Jays team facing the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Tampa Bay Rays. Now Halladay gets to pitch against teams like the Washington Nationals and Mets.

Halladay went 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA, nine complete games, and four shutouts in 32 games for the Blue Jays last season. Pitching in the National League, it’s very realistic to expect Halladay to improve on those numbers in 2010.

Halladay should be the first pitcher taken in all draft formats next season.

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